Press Release

Welch joined Axios’ Future of Health Summit 2026 WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) , a member of the Senate Finance Committee on Health Care , joined Axios Live for their second annual Future of Health Summit to discuss America’s changing health care landscape and Senate Democrats’ early efforts to restore access to health care and lower out-of-pocket costs in the 120 th Congress. In his interview with Peter Sullivan, Health Care Policy Reporter for Axios, Senator Welch highlighted how his bipartisan Fair Prescription Drug Prices for Americans Act would offer relief for millions of patients by requiring pharmaceutical companies to charge Americans what other countries pay for medications. “We’ve got an incredible challenge in this country. We have to have as a goal—in my view, and it’s got to be a shared goal—that we have to have a health care system where citizens can have access to health care they need regardless of their ability to pay. Now, does that sound like pie in the sky? Most countries have that. All countries with their health care systems have challenges, but our challenges are that we have a health care system that is unsustainably unaffordable. It’s unaffordable for taxpayers with Medicare and Medicaid, it’s unaffordable for employers who are constantly doing their best to take care of their employees,” said Senator Welch . “What I hope is that instead of having a blame game when we get back next year, we appreciate the urgency of coming up with something that’s sustainable for folks, whether they voted for Trump or voted for Harris. It just doesn’t matter, this is too essential to the well-being of our families.” View photos from the event and watch Senator Welch’s remarks below: Video from Axios, used with permission Read key excerpts of Senator Welch’s conversation with Axios Reporter Peter Sullivan: Peter Sullivan: “The president has been talking about getting Congress to pass this ‘Most Favored Nation’ idea into law. You could see yourself voting for that if it came up?” Sen. Welch: “Well, not only vote for it, I would work actively and aggressively to make it happen. The president hasn’t introduced any legislation, alright?…There’s a lot of talk here, but there’s not real action. But again, here’s the sadness that I have in the current sort of political environment that we have…If you talk to people in Kansas about health care, and you talk to people in Vermont about health care—their anxiety about what those premiums are; their anxieties about the well-being of people they love and their families—it’s totally the same. “This is a shared problem. And when again you start out with the fact that people here pay twice as much as other countries and we don’t have the same health outcomes, there’s got to be a shared acknowledgement that you know what, that’s messed up. And we’ve got to then start working on a shared solution.” ••• Peter Sullivan: “Last point on the ‘Most Favored Nation’ drug pricing, I mean, has the administration done outreach? Has anyone from the administration reached out to you to talk about that policy this year? You would like them to reach out to you? Sen. Welch: “I’ll check my inbox—nothing there. I check every single day! [laughter] You know what? I am all in. If President Trump comes down and he says: ‘let’s do Most Favored Nation,’ sign me up. I’m ready, I’m going to go talk to every single one of my colleagues. So, this is not on the level from the administration, okay? Because Trump’s not a shy guy, right? And if he wanted something to happen in the United States Senate, it’s a kind of ‘or else’ situation in terms of his discussions with my Republican colleagues. So, I’ll keep checking, and I’ll keep hoping, and I promise I’ll keep working if he comes in with the ‘Most Favored Nation.’ ••• This Congress, Senator Welch has led the introduction of several bills to make health care more accessible and affordable for Vermonters, including the 340B Pharmaceutical Access To Invest in Essential, Needed Treatments & Support (PATIENTS) Act , the No Big Blockbuster Bailouts Act , the EMS ROCS Act, the Eliminating Thickets to Improve Competition (ETHIC) Act , the Fair Prescription Drug Prices for Americans Act , the Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies (CONNECT) for Health Act , the Fair Funding for Rural Hospitals Act , and the Rural Hospital Support Act . ###